Note: The following two articles by Tozer and
Spurgeon appeared in the March 1, 2004 issue of Bible & Life, a
Bible Teaching Newsletter of Biblical Doctrine & New Testament Assembly
Life (Volume 11, No. 2). This is sent out free of charge and is
supported entirely by the free will offerings of the Lord's people.
Correspondence should be sent to: BIBLE & LIFE Newsletter, c/o David
Dunlap, 3116 Gulfwind Dr., Land O' Lakes, FL 34639. Phone *813)
996-1053.

A German philosopher many years ago said something to the
effect that the more a man has in his own heart, the less he will require
from the outside; excessive need for support from without is proof of the
bankruptcy of the inner man.

If this is true (and I believe it is) then the present
inordinate attachment to every form of entertainment is evidence that the inner
life of modern man is in serious decline. The average man has no central core of
moral assurance, no spring within his own breast, no inner strength to place him
above the need for repeated psychological shots to give him the courage to go on
living. He has become a parasite on the world, drawing his life from his
environment, unable to live a day apart from the stimulation which society
affords him.

Schleiermacher held that the feeling of dependence lies at
the root of all religious worship, and that however high the spiritual life
might rise, it must always begin with a deep sense of a great need which only
God could satisfy.

If this sense of need and a feeling of dependence are at the
root of natural religion, it is not hard to see why the great god Entertainment
is so ardently worshiped by so many. For there are millions who cannot live
without amusement; life without some form of entertainment for them is simply
intolerable; they look forward to the blessed relief afforded by professional
entertainers and other forms of psychological narcotics as a dope addict looks
to his daily shot of heroin. Without them they could not summon courage to face
existence.

No one with common human feeling will object to the simple
pleasures of life, nor to such harmless forms of entertainment as may help to
relax the nerves and refresh the mind exhausted by toil. Such things, if used
with discretion, may be a blessing along the way. That is one thing, however,
the all-out devotion to entertainment as a major activity for which and by which
men live is definitely something else again.

The abuse of a harmless thing is the essence of sin. The
growth of the amusement phase of human life to such fantastic proportions is a
portent, a threat to the souls of modern men. It has been built into a
multimillion dollar racket with greater power over human minds and human
character than any other educational influence on earth.

And the ominous thing is that its power is almost exclusively
evil, rotting the inner life, crowding out the long eternal thoughts which would
fill the souls of men, if they were but worthy to entertain them. The whole
thing has grown into a veritable religion which holds its devotees with a
strange fascination; and a religion, incidentally, against which it is now
dangerous to speak. For centuries the Church stood solidly against every form of
worldly entertainment, recognizing it for what it was—a device for wasting time,
a refuge from the disturbing voice of conscience, a scheme to divert attention
from moral accountability.

For this she got herself abused roundly by the sons of this
world. But of late she has become tired of the abuse and has given over the
struggle. She appears to have decided that if she cannot conquer the great god
Entertainment she may as well join forces with him and make what use she can of
his powers.

So, today we have the astonishing spectacle of millions of dollars being poured
into the unholy job of providing earthly entertainment for the so-called sons of
heaven. Religious entertainment is in many places rapidly crowding out the
serious things of God.

Many churches these days have become little more than poor
theaters where fifth-rate "producers" peddle their shoddy wares with the full
approval of evangelical leaders who can even quote a holy text in defense of
their delinquency. And hardly a man dares raise his voice against it.

The great god Entertainment amuses his devotees mainly by
telling them stories. The love of stories, which is a characteristic of
childhood, has taken fast hold of the minds of the retarded saints of our day,
so much so that not a few persons manage to make a comfortable living by
spinning yarns and serving them up in various disguises to church people.

What is natural and beautiful in a child may be shocking when
it persists into adulthood, and more so when it appears in the sanctuary and
seeks to pass for true religion. Is it not a strange thing and a wonder that,
with the shadow of atomic destruction hanging over the world and with the coming
of Christ drawing near, the professed followers of the Lord should be giving
themselves up to religious amusements? That in an hour when mature saints are so
desperately needed vast numbers of believers should revert to spiritual
childhood and clamor for religious toys?

"Remember, 0 Lord, what is come
upon

us:
consider,
and behold our reproach. The crown is fallen from our head: woe unto us,
that we have sinned ! For this our heart is faint; for these things our eyes
are dim." AMEN. AMEN.

Taken from Root of the Righteous, Harrisburg, PA:
Christian Publications, 1955, p. 32-33.

"When
amusement is necessary to get people to listen to the gospel there will be
failure. This is not the method of Christ. To form an
organization and provide all kinds of entertainment for young people, in
order that they may come to the Bible classes, is to be foredoomed to
failure." --G. Campbell Morgan

The following is from a newspaper article which
appeared in the Tampa Tribune, Tampa, FL (Jan. 21, 2004) entitled,
"Church Offers Lure of Almighty Dollar":

"Churches are always asking
for money. But we are going to turn it around," said Rev. Tim Dyson of
Church Alive in Tampa, FL. The church plans on giving away checks
and gift certificates to newcomers--the most, a check of $2004.00.
Friday evening's event will include clowns, a light show, and music from
rock musician Clint Brown. Dyson says, "It takes creativity to reach
out to new members." This from a minister who roars into services on
a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. He has delivered sermons from a boat
hauled into the sanctuary, and set up a boxing ring to fight demons of
drugs and divorce."

The following is from The Wall Street
Journal, March 10, 2004:

For the first time in 10
years, Mary Wilkinson went to church one Sunday in January. She sat in a
back pew at St. Francis Episcopal Church in Stamford, Conn., flipping
through a prayer book and listening intently to the priest's sermon.

What drew Ms. Wilkinson back
into the fold was a new monthly program the church introduced -- Holy
Communion for pets. As part of the service, the 59-year-old retired
portfolio manager carried her 17-year-old tiger cat to the altar, waited
in line behind three panting dogs to receive the host and had a special
benediction performed for her cat, Purr Box Jr.

"I like that the other
parishioners are animal people," Ms. Wilkinson says. With pews hard to
fill, a small number of otherwise-traditional clergy are welcoming animals
into the flock. Some are creating pet-friendly worship services, while
others have started making house calls for sick animals.

Some are starting to accompany
pet owners to the vet when they euthanize a beloved pet. Occasionally,
clergy are even officiating at pet funerals and group "bark mitzvahs..."

All Saints Episcopal Church in
Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has doubled attendance at its Sunday evening
service since it began last summer to invite pets once a month...

Last summer, a member of St.
Francis Episcopal Church in Stamford began bringing her King Charles
Spaniel on Sunday mornings; soon, several other attendees were regularly
bringing their dogs. "They felt that they would be welcomed, because we
have long had a blessing of the animals," says Frank Baker, the church's
former treasurer.

Feeding Sheep or Amusing Goats?

By

C. H. Spurgeon

An evil is in the professed camp of the Lord, so gross in its
impudence, that the most shortsighted can hardly fail to notice it during the
past few years. It has developed at an abnormal rate, even for evil. It has
worked like leaven until the whole lump ferments. The devil has seldom done a
cleverer thing than hinting to the church that part of their mission is to
provide entertainment for the people, with a view to winning them.

From speaking out as the Puritans did, the church has
gradually toned down her testimony, then winked at and excused the frivolities
of the day. Then she tolerated them in her borders. Now she has adopted them
under the plea of reaching the masses.

My first contention is that providing amusement for the
people is nowhere spoken of in the Scriptures as a function of the church. If it
is a Christian work, why did not Christ speak of it? "Go ye into all the world
and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). That is clear enough. So
it would have been if He had added, "and provide amusement for those who do not
relish the gospel." No such words, however, are to be found. It did not seem to
occur to Him.

Then again, "He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and
some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers

.., for the work
of the ministry" (Eph. 4:11-12). Where do entertainers come in? The Holy Spirit
is silent concerning them. Were the prophets persecuted because they amused the
people or because they refused? The concert has no martyr roll.

Again, providing amusement is in direct antagonism to the
teaching and life of Christ and all His apostles. What was the attitude of the
church to the world? We are not sugar candy, —"Ye are the salt" (Matt.
5:13) ---something the world will spit out, not swallow. Short and sharp was the
utterance, "Let the dead bury their dead" (Matt. 8:22). He was in awful
earnestness.

Had Christ introduced more of the bright and pleasant
elements into His mission, He would have been more popular but, because of the
searching nature of His teaching, many turned away. I do not hear Him say, "Run
after these people Peter and tell them we will have a different style of service
tomorrow, something short and attractive with little preaching. We will have a
pleasant evening for the people. Tell them they will be sure to enjoy it. Be
quick Peter, we must get the people somehow." Jesus pitied sinners, sighed and
wept over them, but never sought to amuse them.

In vain will the Epistles be searched to find, any trace of
this gospel of amusement! Their message is, Come out, keep out, keep clean out!"
Anything approaching foolishness is conspicuous by its absence. They had
boundless confidence in the gospe

l
and employed no other weapon.

After Peter and John were locked up for preaching, the church
had a prayer meeting but they did not pray, "Lord grant unto Thy servants that
by a wise and discriminating use of innocent recreation we may show these people
how happy we are. If they ceased not from preaching Christ, they had not time
for arranging entertainments. Scattered by persecution, they went everywhere
preaching the gospel. They turned the world upside down (Acts 17:6)." That is
the only difference! Lord, clear the church of all the rot and rubbish the devil
has imposed on her, and bring us back to apostolic methods.

Lastly, the mission of amusement fails to effect the end
desired. It works havoc among young converts. Let the careless and scoffers, who
thank God because the church met them halfway, speak and testify. Let the heavy
laden who found peace through the concert not keep silent! Let the drunkard to
whom the dramatic entertainment has been God's link in the chain of the
conversion, stand up! There are none to answer. The mission of amusement
produces no converts. The need of the hour for today

*s
ministry is believing scholarship joined with earnest spirituality, the one
springing from the other as fruit from the root. The need is biblical doctrine,
so understood and felt, that it sets men on fire.

"What the church needs today is a new confrontation
with the whole counsel of God, proclaimed in the power of the Holy Spirit
with authority and love, by men who know their God and who honor His only
written Revelation. Then, and then only, may we expect our deepest needs
to be supplied, and God's purpose for His Church to be accomplished in our
day" (Dr. John C. Whitcomb, Does God Want Christians To Perform
Miracles Today?, pp. 12-13).